Everybody's Got Their Ghosts
by Havah Kinny
Summary: Movieverse. When Percy goes missing, everyone at camp believes he has run away, save for Grover and Annabeth. With no one to believe them, they turn to Luke for help in a desperate attempt to locate their kidnapped friend. Slash, Percy/Luke.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: I am going to tell you now – I have not read ANY of the books and I only saw the movie as part of a group thing with my friends from Myth class, so this is based solely on the movie and a little of what I know about mythology, but not much. I hope that it's interesting!

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Percy sighed as he walked towards the camp. He had been visiting his mother for the weekend, and heading back towards Camp Half Blood was something he both anticipated and feared. He had asked his mother to let him walk from the road, as he was still trying to get his head around everything that had happened. He was a hero, but he still had a long way to go with his training, and in the past few weeks, he had felt himself becoming more and more distant from his friends and the camp. Luke had been locked up, under constant observation by Chiron and his helpers. Percy still had trouble believing that he had been so betrayed by Luke, but he couldn't help remember what Grover had told him when he first started to learn who he truly was. Trust no one.

Percy's thoughts were interrupted, though, as something slammed into him, knocking him instantly off his feet and to the ground. He let out a dull groan of pain, moving one hand to his hip to check where he had collided with a large rock. He reached into his pocket for his pen, but before he got the chance to extract it, someone came up behind him, hitting him in the head with the same rock he had crashed into. He filled momentarily with fear and helplessness before passing out cold onto the ground.

When Percy awoke, the first thing he was conscious of was his pounding headache. His whole body felt sore, but his head was, by far, the worst. He tried to look around, but thanks to a heavy, black cloth tied over his eyes, he could see nothing but the dark interior of the fabric. He tried to lift a hand to remove the blindfold only to find that his arms had been secured behind his back, each of his wrists bound to the opposite elbow with strong ropes. Another length of rope had been wrapped around his upper arms, binding them tightly to his torso. He quickly discovered that his ankles and legs both above and below the knee were bound together tightly.

"Mmmph!" Percy tried to cry out, but a thick, white rag had been shoved through his mouth, tied securely at the back of his head. He began to pull at the ropes, hoping got use his powers to get himself loose. If there was water anywhere near him, he should be able to summon it and get free, but after several minutes, he felt no closer to getting free. Panic began to set in, and he tried to maneuver his body enough to reach into his pocket for the pen. However, he quickly realized that his jacket, and along with it anything he could have used to escape, had been removed, leaving him shivering in jeans and a t-shirt as he rested against the cold, stone ground of his prison.

He tried to keep a rational mind, but his head was still throbbing and his thoughts were shrouded with panic and pain. He struggled more, trying to scream for help against his gag. After several minutes, he still felt no change in the security of the restraints, and he gave up, breathing deeply as he curled up on the floor, hesitantly submitting himself to his captivity.


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N: Alright, so for future notice, I AM going to be taking liberties with the Gorgons and mythology and stuff, so don't hate me! I hope that you enjoy this. (I won't always update this fast, but the last thing I posted was short, a prologue, really, so here's the first real chapter.

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The next morning, Grover was summoned to Chiron, and he approached him quickly, not wanting to keep the man in charge waiting. He looked at the centaur as he approached, trying to read what he was thinking so that he would have some grasp as to what the meeting was about.

"What is it?" Grover asked as he reached Chiron, looking upwards.

"This morning I found this outside of my quarters." Chiron handed Grover a folded piece of paper. Grover unfolded it and immediately recognized Percy's handwriting. He quickly scanned the letter, frowning slightly.

**Chiron, **

** Camp is too much for me right now. I need to take a little time off, time to myself to figure out who I am and what I'm supposed to be. Please allow me this favor, as the past few weeks have been very, very confusing for me. I will be back when I have grown more comfortable with who and what I am.**

** Sincerely, **

**Percy Jackson**

"What?" Grover looked back up at Chiron, brows still furrowed in a frown.

"I want to know if he mentioned anything to you about taking this little break from camp," Chiron asked.

"No." Grover shook his head. "He didn't." The satyr bit his lip, unable to push back the feeling that something wasn't right. Not only did Percy tell him almost everything, but the letter seemed oddly formal for the young demigod.

"Alright, well then he must really mean that he wants the time." Chiron sighed. "I think that we should let him have it. You will remain here and take up your duties as his protector again once he returns."

"Look, I respect what you're saying and all," Grover began. "But I don't know if I buy this note, I mean its Percy's handwriting, yeah, but something just doesn't feel right, it feels too formal to be the Percy Jackson that I know."

"I think he's maturing," Chiron countered. "I think this letter is a formal way of asking for time off; if he wrote an immature note, he must have known that it wouldn't be taken as seriously."

"So you really believe that he's taking some time to figure himself out?" Grover asked.

"Yes, I do." Chiron nodded. "His mother received a similar note and she, as did I, found it to be authentic. Percy is a very troubled young man, Grover, and I know that you want to help him all of the time, but some things are better discovered on your own."

"Alright…" Grover let out a deep sigh. "Do you mind if I keep this?" he asked, gesturing towards the note. "I want to take another look at it."

"Go right ahead." He nodded. "Just remember what I said, Grover. Give Percy his space."

"I will." Grover sighed, tucking the note into his pocket as he took his leave, going immediately to find Annabeth.

He found her practicing her swordsmanship in the field, but the second she saw the concerned look on his face, she knocked her opponent to the side, ignoring him completely as she walked away.

"What is it?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

"Percy didn't come back last night like he was supposed to." Grover held out the note for her to read as they began walking away from the group. "He left this instead, at least that's what Chiron says."

"Alright." Annabeth took a minute to read the note before letting out a deep sigh. "And you think it's a fake?"

"It's his handwriting, I mean if anyone knows Percy's writing, it's me, but the style just doesn't seem like him." Grover shook his head. "He's not that formal, you and I both know that. He's free spirited and he does what he wants, he wouldn't write something that stiff, not if it meant so much to him."

"No, you're right." Annabeth nodded, scanning over the letter again. "Did you mention this to Chiron?"

"He's convinced It's real, as is Percy's mom." Grover bit his lip. "But I really think this is something bigger than him trying to find himself. I don't think he ran away, Annabeth. I know he's been having trouble dealing with camp and stuff, but I don't think he would just disappear like that."

"Especially not without telling either of us." Annabeth frowned. "You're absolutely right, something's up, I can feel it."

"Me too, but the horse dude in charge isn't going to let us look into this, he insisted that Percy needed some time to figure things out."

"So it's up to us, then." Annabeth shrugged. "I mean if you really feel that something's wrong, as I do now, sometimes you just have to act on it."

"What do you think could have happened to him, though?" Grover asked. "I mean his mom usually drives him back to camp, and she's buying this running away crap."

"I mean we always have to factor in the chance that it's not crap, that he actually did run away."

"I know you don't believe that," Grover stated.

"I don't," Annabeth confirmed. "But we have to take everything into consideration, even if it's not our number one choice." She paused. "Percy has already managed to rack up a substantial amount of enemies, it he's pissed anyone off enough to hurt him, I'm not sure."

"I'm his protector," Grover stated. "I'm not supposed to let things like this happen, I'm supposed to be there when people try to hurt him and make sure that they don't!"

"Don't beat yourself up over this one, he did ask you not to come home with him this weekend, he was aware of the dangers he was in being in the real world by himself. I would buy that he ran away, all things considered, except for the fact that he didn't mention it to either of us. I mean he knew that we would come with him if we thought he was doing anything dangerous, but if he just wanted time off to think, we could have respected that, right?"

"Of course." Grover nodded. "Something's definitely not right. Percy's in danger, Annabeth, I can feel it." He bit his lip. "I just don't know what it is, and that's really starting to scare me."


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N: Please keep in mind that A. this is entirely movieverse and B. that I am taking MAJOR liberties with mythology. Thank you!

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Percy didn't know how long he had been alone in the stone-floored room before he heard a door open. He had drifted in and out of sleep since he had woken the first time, and his perception of time was entirely gone. He didn't bother to raise his head as he heard footsteps, what good would it do? He couldn't see his companions anyways. He held his breath, hoping that whoever had just entered was there to release him. However, the second they began to speak, Percy knew he wasn't going to be so lucky.

"Well, well, well, is the hero awake?" A thick, sickeningly sweet female voice rang out, her words reverberating against the walls of the room.

"Mmmm!" Percy tried to struggle as a pair of hands grabbed him, lifting him off of the ground. His back was forced against the wall and he could hear a hissing in his ear as his captor held him there, holding tightly to him.

"Do you know who I am, Percy?" the voice asked, this time much closer to him.

"Who _we_ are, actually." A second female voice, this one slightly distant, spoke, her tone clearly taunting.

"Mmmph!" Percy tried to push his captor off of him, but she held him strong, keeping him pressed painfully up against the wall. He growled, angered that they were asking him a question he couldn't answer for two reasons. One, he was blindfolded, he couldn't see them to know who they were, and two, he was gagged so that he wouldn't be able to say it, even if he did.

"Think, Percy." The woman's voice grew closer and the hissing sound grew louder. Percy drew back as he felt something cold against his cheek, followed by a loud hiss. He felt the same texture on his forehead, then his chin and neck, and his heart began to race.

"Mmmmm!" He gulped, knowing now that the loud hissing belonged to the snakes that were now slithering against his skin.

"Do you know now, Percy?" The second woman asked. Percy remained silent and still, afraid of moving with the reptiles so close.

"I am Stheno," the first woman declared. "And this is my sister, Euryale. Do you know now, who we are, hero?" Again, Percy stayed silent, trying to concentrate all of his brainpower on finding a way out.

"We are the sister's of Medusa," Euryale supplied, walking closer to Percy. "And we are here to avenge her."

Percy's heart froze for a moment. He had heard of the Gorgons, that there were three sisters, but he had pushed it into the back of his mind, forgetting it almost entirely as more important things had been going on. Now, however, he tried to recall as many facts as he could about them, and as one fact came into mind, he began to panic even more. Medusa was the mortal Gorgon, but the other two could only be killed if they looked directly into the eyes of one of their sisters, and even then, only if the sister was intent on killing the other.

"That's right, hero." Stheno laughed, noting the look of fear intensifying on Percy's face. "You'd better be sure that blindfold doesn't slip. What do you have to say for yourself?" Stehno whispered something that Percy couldn't understand, and one of the snakes pushed its way between Percy's cheek and the cloth gagging him, pulling downwards so that the fabric fell around his neck, but still, he said nothing.

"Speak, Percy!" Euryale commanded.

"What's your game?" Percy asked quietly, trying to sound more brave than he currently felt. "Why blindfold me when you could have your vengeance with just one glance?"

"Oh, ignorant boy." Stheno laughed. "We do, of course, intend to kill you, but do you really think we would give you the satisfaction of a painless death? The last memories that you're ever going to have, Percy Jackson, are of hopelessness, fear, loneliness and pain far beyond anything you can imagine."

"That's bullshit," Percy hissed, mustering up as much fight as he could. "I have the gods on my side."

"Even the gods can't help you now." Stheno let out another harsh laugh.

"Look, this is a lovely conversation," Percy began, his voice growing louder as the fire inside of him grew. "But my throat's a little dry, if you plan on continuing, I'm going to need something to drink first."

"Clever, boy," Euryale cut in. "But we know what you can do, what you're capable of. If we give you water, you'll fight us, and we can't have that, now can we?"

"One glass isn't going to do anything," Percy stated. "I can only control what's around me, I can't create it."

"Fine, you want a drink?" Percy could tell that Stheno was smiling, mocking him, as she spoke. "We won't let you dry out." Percy gulped, knowing that if he could find some way to get water, he could heal himself, make the throbbing in his head go away, the aching throughout his body disappear, and then he might be able to think more clearly.

"We wouldn't want you to die such a painless death," Euryale added. "Though it would be fun to see the son of Poseidon dry out, we have far greater things in store for you."

"Sister," Stheno called. "Go get him some water."

"Of course." Percy heard footsteps growing more and more faint as Euryale turned, exiting the room, leaving Percy and Stheno alone.

"Now, hero, when you wake, you shall have your water, but you will be too weak to use your powers, so you'd best save your strength and not bother trying."

"I'm not going to give up," Percy declared through clenched teeth. "Your sister got what she had coming to her, and you two will suffer the same fate, you'll see. You won't get me, not like this."

"You're going to eat those words, boy." Stheno pushed Percy harder against the wall before whispering again in a language Percy could not understand. She let go of the captive with one hand, and Percy tried to struggle against his restraints during his moment of slight freedom, but even he knew it was of no use. Stheno shoved the cloth back into his mouth, checking to make sure it was tight before reinstating her firm hold on Percy.

Percy gulped as, once again, Stheno whispered to her snakes. He felt the head of one of the reptiles on his neck, and before he had a second to register what had happened, fangs sank deep into his throat. He let out a cry of pain as the fangs retracted and he could feel warm blood trickle down his neck.

"Goodnight, hero." Stheno threw Percy to the ground and seconds later, he heard the door close. As he lay on the hard, stone floor, Percy could feel what strength he had draining from him, undoubtedly a cause of the snake's venom.

_Please, father, _Percy thought, eyes squeezed shut, even behind the blindfold. _Speak to me, I need you now more than ever! Help me, please!_ Percy waited, hoping to hear the strong, guiding voice of Poseidon, but as he succumbed to the snake's poison and drifted from consciousness, all was silent.

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_**For those of you wondering, Luke will appear in the next chapter, I promise!**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N: Hey, so here's the next chapter. I hope that you enjoy it! Love you all!

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"Okay, we need to think this through." Grover sighed as he and Annabeth walked around the now dark camp. "Not a single person here believes us, which means we really have to do this ourselves."

"Will you shut up?" Annabeth ran her fingers through her long hair. "I'm trying to think."

"Fine! It's just his dad loves him, why isn't Poseidon doing something? I mean, can't the gods see all?"

"Grover, you're a genius!" Annabeth stopped short, throwing her arms around the Satyr. "That's it!"

"Wait, what's it?" Grover frowned as he tried to figure out what he had said that classified him as a genius.

"The gods see _most_," Annabeth began. "Only three things have the power to shield someone from the gods, to hide Percy from Poseidon's view!" Annabeth turned, heading back towards the cabins.

"Whoa there, Annabeth, where the hell are you going?" Grover chased after her, still very much confused.

"If Percy's location is being hidden from Poseidon, there are only three places he could be – you really need to brush up on your studies, Grover."

"Do I look like a brainiac to you?" Grover asked. "I'm a protector, I exist to protect Percy and for virtually no other reason."

"Well right now, this is a part of protecting him." Annabeth sighed. "So I'll break it down for you. Only three beings have the power to shield themselves and others from the gods – the Muses, the Gorgons and the Fates." She paused, lowering her voice as they neared the sleeping quarters. "The Muses have no reason to take Percy and if he were with the Fates, odds are he would probably be dead already and his shade would have been made known to Poseidon."

"What are you saying?" Grover asked.

"I think Percy's been kidnapped by Stheno and Euryale, Medusa's sisters. All of the pieces fit! They have the motive, the revenge for Medusa, and the ability to make it look like he's in hiding on his own until their means come to an end and it's too late."

"Too late?" Grover gulped. "I don't like the sound of that."

"They're going to kill him, but they're taking their time. We can stop them, but it won't be easy, Stheno is more vicious than Euryale and Medusa combined and each one individually is more powerful than Medusa." She pressed her hand to her forehead. "That and we don't even know where to begin looking." Annabeth disappeared into her cabin, grabbing her sword and shoving a few things into a backpack before emerging.

"Hey, Annabeth?" Grover put his hand on her shoulder, stopping her constant motion. "I think I know someone who can help us."

"Grover, no one at his camp believes that anything's wrong – we have to do this ourselves."

"You're not listening to me." Grover shook his head. "I don't know if he'll believe us, but he knows things, he has documents, maps, tools…"

"No." Annabeth shook her head. "He betrayed us, absolutely not."

"He betrayed us because daddy didn't love him enough. He's not a bad guy; we need Luke's help, I hate to admit it just as much as you, but he's got things, knowledge, that might be able to help us…"

"Fine." Annabeth frowned. "But only because he might be able to help us find Percy."

"Duh!" Grover rolled his eyes, turning towards the prison that had been specially designed to hold Luke.

"Well I can honestly say that I didn't expect to see you two." Luke sat down, watching Grover and Annabeth from behind the transparent force field that kept him in place. "What brings you here?"

"We need your help." Grover sighed, head bowed as he admitted their motive.

"Oh yeah?" Luke seemed highly amused by the statement, and Grover knew that, if nothing else, they had his attention.

"Stheno and Euryale have Percy," Annabeth explained. "No one believes us, but all of the pieces are there. If you know where they are, please, tell us – we have to find them before they kill Percy."

"I don't know where they are." Luke shook his head. "They move. A lot. However, I do know how you can find them."

"Tell us." Annabeth glared at Luke, annoyed with him for stalling.

"Hold your horses." HE got up lazily, going to his desk. "Alright, let's see." He lifted a piece of parchment, tapping his chin. "Alright, the last documentation of your Gorgon sisters is in Siberia just under a century ago."

"What good does that do us?" Grover asked.

"Let me finish!" Luke rolled his eyes. "When they move on, they leave clues as to where they're going next. They leave them carved in stone, in Latin, of course, so that only friends can find them and not just any old demigod."

"Fine, just tell us where to look." Annabeth folded her arms across her chest. "And what to look for."

"I don't 'think so." Luke shook his head. "You're going to need me – I speak Latin, I can read the clues, but it's not just that." He smirked. "There's only one way to destroy these ladies, now I know you have what you need to do that, but you don't know it. I do."

"What do you want?" Grover snarled.

"I'm coming with you." Luke threw a few things into a bag.

"No, you're not." Grover shook his head. "You'd just try to get Percy killed."

"Grover, he's right." Annabeth sighed. "We _are_ going to need him." Annabeth raised her sword. "But if you stab us in the back, Luke," she hissed. "You don't live to brag about it." She jammed the sword into the force field, holding it there until Luke made his way out of the dying shield.

"Come on, let's go." Annabeth sheathed her sword. "We have to go before anyone realizes Luke's missing."

"Wait." Luke put a firm hand on her shoulder and she whipped around, ready to take him down if he posed a threat. "We're going to need the head of Medusa and a tracker."

"The head I can get you," Grover stated. "But where do suppose we get a tracker?"

"It just so I happens, I know where to find one." Luke shrugged. "We'll just have to make a quick detour through the Highlands."

"Scotland?" Annabeth asked.

"Yeah." Luke nodded.

"If we hurry, we can be there by tomorrow evening." Annabeth sighed, continuing to walk again, all three of them knowing they were in a race against time.


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/N: This chapter does contain a little violence. Sorry!

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When Percy awoke, he was still on the stone floor of his prison, his head was still pounding, his body still ached and he felt weaker than he ever had before. He groaned against the gag as he tried to sit up, his body barely obeying his commands. After several seconds, he realized that, while his ankles and legs were still tightly bound, the ropes tying his arms and torso had been severed and his wrists were now in front of his body, secured by thick, cast iron shackles. There was barely any slack between the heavy cuffs, but he had more freedom than he had previously.

"HELP!" Percy called out the second he had removed his gag. The cry came out raspy, as his throat was parched and his mouth dry. "Please, help!" He knew that screaming for help was of little use, but with the snake's venom still weakening him, there wasn't much else he could do. He reached down, feeling around to try and untie the ropes, keeping the blindfold on out of fear of his captors' stony glare.

"Trying to escape, are you?" Percy jumped as Stheno grabbed his wrists, yanking his arms above his head as she effortlessly pulled her captive to his feet. A clasp was hooked around the short length of chain separating the shackles and the chain the hook was attached to was pulled tight, tugging Percy's arms as far upwards above his head as they could go.

"Ah!" Percy let out a cry of pain as his stretched body was forced to stand. He barely trusted his legs to keep him up, but he knew the chains would not allow him to sit or lie down.

"Euryale, the water?" Stheno moved out of the way so that her sister could move forwards.

"Open wide." Euryale tipped the water glass forwards, allowing Percy to drink thirstily. Percy could feel the water entering him, and he tried to control it, to use its presence to heal, but he was too weak to summon even the strength to heal himself. When the glass was empty, Euryale pulled it away, leaving Percy longing for more.

"What do you have to say for yourself, son of Poseidon?" Stheno approached him again, the snakes in her hair hissing around him. "Even your element cannot save you now." She laughed, removing the blindfold for the first time since he had been captured.

"I thought you wanted to make this hurt," Percy spat, squeezing his eyes shut as the blindfold was cast aside.

"Oh, we do, boy." Stheno laughed as one of her serpentine locks slithered over Percy's eyes. "But we want you to see us." She whispered to her snake and it moved, sliding across Percy's cheek. "Open your eyes, Percy," she whispered. "You won't be turned to stone."

"No." Percy shook his head, using all of his might to repel her persuasive words. Even if she was telling the truth, he didn't want to give her the satisfaction she desired.

"I said open your eyes!" Stheno moved closer, her snakes coiling and twisting around Percy's neck.

"NO!" He remained still, determined not to give her what she wanted. His heart raced and his body shook as he tried to ignore the serpents.

"She said to open your eyes!" Euryale shouted, moving forwards swiftly, standing behind Percy as her own snakes advanced on the boy. This time, Percy said nothing, hoping that, if he refused to give in, they would leave him be, let him keep his eyes closed.

"Make no mistake," Stheno seethed. "We _will_ break you, Percy Jackson. You will not get out of here alive, so you might as well give in. If you're a good little boy and you obey us, we may take pity on you and grant you easy passage."

"You can't have me." He shook his head. "I won't give you what you want."

"Oh, you will." Stheno laughed, ordering her snakes to move slightly. "You have one last chance to obey before we force your hand." Percy remained silent, trying to ignore the snake slithering around his collar bone.

"Fine, then." Euryale moved slightly, remaining behind Percy and, in perfect unison, two sets of fangs sank into his skin. Stheno's serpent attacked his chest, just below his right side of the collar bone while Euryale's bit down just beneath his left shoulder blade.

Percy could not hold back a scream of pain as his own blood began to stain his t-shirt. He gripped at the chains, his knuckles white as he continued to cry out. These bites were not like the first, and as their unique venom entered his blood stream, pain coursed through his body.

"Open your eyes, Percy," Stheno commanded. "Open then now. Look at us, boy. After all, what could be worse than the venom? Could taking a peek at us really be that bad?"

Percy tried to hold out, breathing quickly and shallowly. He bit down hard on his tongue, trying to both keep from screaming again and to distract himself from the agony flowing through his veins. He felt as though his body was on sire, burning up from the inside out, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't ignore it. Slowly, Percy opened his eyes, half hoping that he would be turned to stone so that he would no longer have to endure the excruciating pain. He blinked, the sudden contact with the light after so much darkness stinging his eyes.

"Oh, he has such beautiful, blue eyes." Stheno smiled at him, her own eyes hidden behind dark glasses. "Euryale, come see!"

"Oh!" Euryale clapped her hands as she moved forwards, pushing up her own glasses. "So much pain!" She raised her hand, fingers grazing over Percy's cheeks. "Oh, and he's burning up, the poor thing!" She snickered, continuing to run her hands over Percy's face.

"Don't touch me." Percy barely managed to get the words out through clenched teeth. HE shuddered at her touch, pain still continuing to weaken him.

"You have no say in what we do," Stheno barked. "You belong to us now, Percy Jackson, and you will until you die." She pushed Euryale out of the way, grabbing a fistful of Percy's hair, yanking his head back.

"Get off of me, hag," he growled.

"Quiet, pet." She placed her hand over his mouth, maintaining her tight grip on his hair. "Just remember, the longer it takes you to give up, the longer you will have to endure this pain." She stroked his cheek, letting go of his hair as she moved her hand from his mouth.

"I will NEVER submit to you!" Percy hissed.

"Then you will die in agony!" Stheno shoved the gag back in his mouth just as another of her snakes reared upwards, sinking it's fangs into Percy's shoulder, causing him to scream loudly around the fabric in his mouth. The sisters left, laughing together as their captive writhed in pain, barely standing, his weight supported only by the chains.

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_**A/N: Question/poll - What would you like to see more of in upcoming chapters? Percy's torture or Annabeth, Luke and Grover's mission to save him? I plan on weighting it more one way or the other within the next few chapters. **_


	6. Chapter 6

_**A/N : Sorry for the wait! I got sick...so it took me awhile! SO SORRY!

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It was just starting to get dark and all three teens were exhausted from travel by the time they reached the house of Luke's contact. Annabeth and Grover had both been hesitant to trust Luke, but so far nothing he had done aside from blackmail his way into coming along had been too awful. He had advised them to take the head of Medusa so that they would be able to destroy the others, and he was currently leading them to a tracker.

"Alright, so who is this guy anyways?" Grover asked, huffing a little as they climbed a hill, moving towards a cottage in the highlands.

"She," Luke corrected. "We're going to see Cayleigh, daughter of Artemis."

"That's impossible." Annabeth stopped short. "Artemis is an adamant virgin, Luke, where are you taking us?" Her words were tipped with anger and she folded her arms across her chest, instantly suspecting the young man of wasting their time.

"She is a virgin," Luke insisted. "Haven't you heard of parthenogenesis?"

"Not being successful," Annabeth stated. "I mean even Hera failed to successfully and asexually produce a decent child."

"Yeah, but since Hephaestus, Artemis has had a lot of time to practice, hasn't she?" Luke rolled his eyes. "Cayleigh is one of three children Artemis has managed to produce on her own, and she's the only girl. She's also the only one I know, so if you want a decent tracker, you're just going to have to trust me."

"Why should we do that?" Grover asked. "You've betrayed us before."

"Because what better tracker could you ever get than the daughter of Artemis?" he asked. "Think about it for a second and then follow me." He turned away from his colleagues, heading towards the cottage.

By the time he had reached the door, Annabeth and Grover had caught up to him, deciding that, if they were going to save Percy, they needed all of the help they could get. Luke smirked, as though to silently say 'I knew you would follow' before raising his fist and knocking on the door.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Luke Castellan." A female voice rang out as the door opened and a second later, a tall girl came into view. She couldn't be more than 21 years old and she had long, wavy blond hair with heather woven in it. She had piercing green eyes and a striking figure emphasized by a sly smile. "I had heard you were imprisoned for stealing the bolt."

"Yeah, well, a friend is in trouble, so I had to make a little jail break." Luke sighed. "Can we come in?"

"Who are your friends?" Cayleigh asked as she opened the door, eyeing Grover and Annabeth as they answered.

"This is Annabeth, daughter of Athena, and Grover, he's a protector."

"Who is he supposed to be protecting?" Cayleigh asked, tilting her head to the side. "Your friend, I assume? The one in trouble?"

"Yes." Luke nodded. "Percy, he's the son of Poseidon and we believe that he's been kidnapped by Stheno and Euryale." He bit his lip. "I know you left camp half blood because you disagree with the gods raising children to be their earth armies, but we really need your help, Cayleigh."

"He's the one who killed Medusa, then?" Cayleigh asked, grabbing a sweatshirt and pulling it on, zipping it up halfway.

"Yeah." Luke nodded. "Look, they're going to kill him."

"He's probably dead already, Luke. If he's with the gorgons, it's a safe bet that he's already a statue."

"No." Annabeth cut in. "He's alive, I can feel it, and you have to help us find him. Please." She gulped. "They're not going to kill him right away, they want him to pay for what he did to their sister, I'm sure of it."

"And you are his girlfriend?"

"Oh, no." Annabeth shook her head, ears flushing red slightly. "I'm just his friend."

"Alright." Cayleigh nodded, smiling slightly at Annabeth. "So I'm guessing you need help tracking these gorgons all over?"

"Yes." Luke reached out, taking Cayleigh's hand. "Come on, say you'll help us."

"Hmm…" Cayleigh let out a deep sigh, pulling her hands away from Luke. She went to the corner of the room and grabbed a longbow and a quiver of arrows as well as a crossbow. "Where do we start?"

"Thank you!" Annabeth and Grover both let out deep, relieved sighs as Cayleigh declared her intentions to help them.

"You're welcome." Cayleigh offered Annabeth another smile, ignoring Grover entirely.

"Alright, well we need to get to Siberia, that's where we have to search for the first hint." He sighed.

"We can get halfway there tonight," Cayleigh stated. "We'll drive to the airport and go from there. We can sleep on the plane." She tucked her crossbow under her arm, reaching for her car keys. "You three look exhausted."

"We haven't slept in over 24 hours," Luke admitted. "Sometimes you just don't get that chance."

"I know what you mean." Cayleigh nodded, leading them towards her car. They all piled in, and two hours later, they were on a plane to Siberia. Annabeth was passed out in a seat next to Cayleigh while a few rows back, Grover and Luke were both still awake.

"You don't think we'll be too late, do you?" Luke asked, looking over at Grover. "I mean, if Percy died, you'd be able to feel it right."

"Yeah." Grover nodded. "I'm pretty sure that I would." He frowned slightly. "I think we'll make it in time if we work hard, but since when do you care? You hate Percy."

"No, I don't hate Percy." Luke let out a deep sigh, raking his fingers through his hair. "I used him to get back at my father, but he was just a random selection. It could have been anyone, it just happened to be him, and I do feel badly about that. Percy's a good guy, I don't want anything to happen to him."

"Well something already has happened to him," Grover stated. "And if you think about it, it's your fault. If you hadn't stolen the lightning bolt, he never would have had to go search for his mother, and he never would have encountered and slain Medusa."

"Why do you think I'm so intent to help?" Luke snapped, surprising even himself with his outburst. "I know that Percy's abduction was my fault, alright? I feel terrible about it, but that's not going to save him, so I'm coming with you and I'm going to help you save him."

"Oh." Grover bit his lip, trying to get comfortable in the seat. "Well you just better hope it's not too late or I'm going to have to get all Medieval on you."

"Yeah, I'd like to see you try," Luke joked.

"Let's hope you never have to." Grover yawned, closing his eyes, and a few minutes later, he was fast asleep. Luke, however, failed to fall asleep, worrying too much about the young man who's life he had single handedly put in jeopardy.

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_**A/N: Alright, so yes, we do have a new character, and if you guys need a picture, let me know and I"ll post one with the next chapter. NOW QUESTION TIME! Some people suggested that Percy be sexually assaulted by his captors. What do you guys think about that? Should it happen or not, and if so, to what extent?  
**_


	7. Chapter 7

_**A/N: Hey, sorry! I tried to upload this like...a week ago and the site wasn't working and, for some reason, I thought that I HAD uploaded it until just now! I'm so sorry for the accidental wait!

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**_

For Percy, things were getting bad. The days were blending together in a mixture of fear, apprehension and blinding pain. Once the gorgons had let him down from the chains that had been holding him on his feet, he had been rebound, his wrists tied to his elbows, his ankles and legs bound tightly together so that he could barely move. They had returned the blindfold, but left off the gag, as he was too weak to do any major screaming, and even if he did, it would be useless in terms of getting help, it would only annoy his captors.

Percy was losing hope faster and faster, and he couldn't help but wonder why Poseidon had let this happen. His father loved him, his mother had told him this time and again, and he couldn't believe that someone who loved him, someone with divine power, would let him undergo pain so excruciating that he wished he were dead. He lay on the floor, curled up as best as his restraints would let him, wondering how long it would be before they took mercy on him and killed him.

They had been feeding him and letting him drink – only the bare minimum to stay alive, but it wasn't enough. He needed water, he needed the element from which he drew his strength, and he hated that he couldn't have it. If he could just get a small amount under his control, he might be able to heal, to escape from this torture. He couldn't stand how hopeless he felt, how weak. He had been considered a hero of sorts, at least in the world he now lived in, but what would people say if they knew that there great hero had fallen in the captivity of two snake-haired women?

He groaned slightly as he moved, every single inch of his body radiating with burning pain. He felt as though he were running hot and cold at the same time, there was no way to get comfortable, and he was absolutely exhausted. Any sleep that he had gotten had been when he was passed out due to pain, and even then, it hadn't been good. He couldn't function, he knew he was dying slowly, and he didn't want this to be the end. He was only a kid.

_Why? _He asked himself as he lay there, eyes squeezed shut, arms sore from being wrench and bound behind his back. _Why me? Why couldn't I have just been a normal kid? Why did all of this have to happen to me? _It wasn't fair to him, he didn't understand why he had to be destined to this fate when so many others got off just fine, living a life happy and free of any of this, completely unaware that the mythological figures they learned about were real…and dangerous.

He couldn't help but feel a jolt of panic as the door opened. Every time someone entered his prison, he only received more pain, and he wasn't sure how much more he could handle. He had lost all track of time, and while it seemed to him that he had been there for a lifetime, he was sure that it couldn't have been all that long. He just hoped that today they would lose the fun of this game and let him rest in peace. He hated giving up like that, but he couldn't take any more pain.

"How is our young hero today?" Euryale approached him, forcing the captive to his feet, pushing him up against the wall. "You look truly fantastic." She laughed and Percy grimaced. He had grown to loathe the sound of that laughter almost as much as the pain that always followed it.

"He looks so tired." Stheno joined her sister in laughter, grinning as she approached the captive. "You look like you're about to cry, young hero!"

"He's no hero." Euryale shook her head. "Not anymore – look at him, he's a fallen hero now, I mean think about – how much of a hero can he be? He's still here. If he were a true hero, he would have been able to escape us, don't you think?"

"You know, you're absolutely right." Stheno nodded, agreeing instantly with her sister. "Percy, why haven't you been able to escape yet? You are the great hero, the son of Poseidon, returning of the lightning bolt, he who restored peace to Olympus…escaping the clutches of a couple of harmless gorgons really shouldn't be too hard…'

"Shut up," Percy grunted, his voice soft, throat dry.

"Aw, after all he's been through, he's still trying to act tough. How cute!" Stheno let out a loud, cold, harsh laugh and Euryale pushed Percy harder against the wall, causing him to cry out in pain. Why was he still here? Why hadn't anyone come for him? Why hadn't his father sent help? He didn't understand why he had been abandon, not after Poseidon had told him that he would always be there for Percy when he needed him. If he didn't need his father now, what did the man consider a time of need?

"Oh Percy…" Euryale sighed, and then, as if reading his mind, continued to speak. "No one's coming for you. No one cares about you, no one loves you and no one wants to see you get out of this alive. They want to see you fall, Percy, they want to know that their "hero" is no more than an immature boy who can be taken down by a couple of women. No one is on your side, Percy Jackson."

"That's not true." Percy tried to make the words sound believable, but the more pain he felt, the more he worried that Euryale was correct – perhaps no one was behind him, perhaps they truly did want to see him fall. The world of the demigods was very competitive and he knew that there were many that would love to see him fall, but he still couldn't handle that his own father had given up on him.

_Maybe_, Percy thought to himself. _Just maybe he as a good reason why he's doing this. Maybe he hasn't given up on me, maybe he's just waiting for the right time to help me._ Percy took a deep breath, trying to convince himself of this, to hold the little spark of hope that he still possessed in his mind as Stheno and Euryale advanced on him, bringing only more pain and suffering.

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_**A/N: Should I get headed towards the rescue pretty quickly? Are you guys fed up with bouncing back and forth and ready to see Luke and the gang in rescue action?**_


	8. Chapter 8

"We don't have much time, we have to move," Cayleigh said as they left the airport. "If your friend truly is with the Gorgons, he may not have a lot of time. Annabeth, Grover, you go get us a car, Luke and I will look over the maps."

"Of course." Annabeth and Grover hurried off, and Cayleigh turned to look at Luke.

"This isn't like you, Luke," she stated. "You're arrogant, self interested. Why are you helping these two kids track around the son of a god you can't stand?"

"It was the only way to get out of my prison," he stated. "You heard what I did, you know the crime I'm being punished for. They offered to break me out in exchange for help, you would have taken the offer if you were in the same place."

"I would never have been in that place." Cayleigh smirked at him. "But you…you would have run from them the first chance you got, Luke. Like I said, I've known you for a long, long time, and this isn't like you. What has you here, Luke? You know I'll get it out of you, so might as well tell me the truth. You hate the gods, you hate the demigods, so what are you doing running around with us, trying to save another one?"

"God, will you back off?" Luke frowned, turning to walk away from Cayleigh.

"Luke, what's wrong with you?" She asked, walking after him and grabbing his arm. "You don't walk away from me, and you don't make friends with people you hate, so what's going on. I'm gonna give you one last chance to be honest with me or I'm on a plane back to the highlands and you're on your own." She folded her arms across her chest defiantly and Luke realized that if he wanted to help Percy, he had no choice.

"Fine." He sighed, raking his hands through his hair. "Percy's different, okay?" He turned, looking away from Cayleigh. He hadn't wanted anyone to find out that he didn't hate Percy as much as everyone thought he did. "He's actually got the power to change this world for the better, and yes, I hate the gods and the demigods, but I'm not apocalyptic, I don't want to see the world go to hell in a handbasket, and that's where it's headed right now if we don't get some real help."

"And his Percy is the real deal?" she asked.

"He's selfless, he's spirited, he cares about the causes." Luke shrugged. "So yeah, I really think that he could do a number on this earth."

"You care about him." Cayleigh smiled at Luke.

"Only as much as the next person." Luke shrugged it off.

"Don't lie to me, Luke Castellan." She put her hand on his shoulder. "You know, it's okay to care about people from time to time. You don't have to be cold and bitter like this for your whole life."

"What would you know about it?" he snapped. "Your mother may have been a goddess, but at least she cared about you…and your father? He didn't abandon you."

"You can't go through life blaming your parents for not having any emotions." Cayleigh shook her head. "Let yourself care about this boy. You might find that hold greater potential than you ever imagined. You're impressive when you're fighting for nothing…I'll bet you're amazing if you're fighting for something you truly care about."

"Oh look," Luke stated, all too glad for a change of subject. "They got the car."

"This conversation isn't over," Cayleigh stated as they got into the car.

"Oh yes it is." Luke sighed, pressing his forehead against the cool glass of the backseat window. What did it matter if Cayleigh was right? So what if he cared about Percy? It's not like they had a hope of finding him anyways…did they?

"So, what do we do?" Grover asked as he turned the car.

"Drive as far as you can up the pass," she stated. "We'll get out and walk the rest of the way. It's going to be cold…are you sure that you can stand it?"

"I'm sure," all three said at once. They drove in silence until they could no more, and then got out of the car, beginning their trek up a large mountain.

"What makes you think the marker will be here?" Annabeth asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Because," Cayleigh said. "This is where they were last documented." She stopped, looking around at a pile of rocks. "This cairn, this is it." She knelt down, un-stacking the rocks until she found one engraved with Latin. "Luke, you're on."

"Okay." Luke took the stone from Cayleigh, squinting to translate the Latin words.

"Well?" Annabeth pushed.

"Oh hold your horses!" Luke snapped. "This isn't exactly easy."

"It's just translation," she stated.

"Well if it's so easy, you do it," Luke hissed, holding the stone out to Annabeth.

"I…" She sighed, pushing it back towards Luke. "I can't. I'm sorry…I just really want to find him."

"And you will," Cayleigh stated, putting her arm around Annabeth. "Just give Luke his time, he's not used to helping people."

"Clearly." Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Is this going to take him long?"

"It might." She nodded. "Their inscriptions are harder to analyze than most, even in Latin, they still use code."

"Oh." Annabeth nodded. "I really can't believe Luke's still helping us. I really thought he'd run the second he got the chance to do so. I don't know what it is, but he seems almost as determined to find Percy as Grover and I am."

"I'm sure that he is." Cayleigh smiled. "If there's one thing I know about Luke it's that once he starts caring about something, it's hard for him to stop. It doesn't happen very often, and he tries to hide it when he does, but Luke is a powerful demigod, and with him on your side, you're going to have trouble losing."

"You think so?" Annabeth smiled at Cayleigh.

"I do." She nodded.

"Hey, guys." He bit his lip. "We have to go to Brazil."

"Brazil?" Grover stated, tilting his head to the side.

"They're in the Amazon Rainforest…or at least the next clue is."

"Oh thank god." Grover grinned. "Somewhere warm."

"Yeah." Cayleigh nodded as Luke pocketed the stone. "We'll drive back to the airport and fly out. If we're going to find your friend before it's too late, we need to really make good time." She headed back for the car, the rest of the group in tow. None of them knew whether they would get to Percy in time, but they all hoped that there would be a way to save him, even Cayleigh who didn't know him, and even Luke…who was supposed to hate him.

_**A/N I'm SO sorry that this took me so long to get posted! I'm also sorry that the next chapter is going to be another one of Annabeth, Grover, Luke and Cayleigh. If anyone's still reading this, I would love opinions on Cayleigh! Thanks, guys! Again, I'm so sorry.**_


	9. Chapter 9

The plane landed in Brazil, and after several hours of travelling, everyone was tired, but none of them were willing to give up and none of them were ready to let their weakness get the best of them. They stopped in at a café for coffee and some food, but were quickly on their way again.

"We can't take a car into the Amazon," Annabeth stated. "We're going to have to hike in."

"That's fine." Cayleigh nodded, looking at the slightly ragtag team that they were. "Luke, how far in?"

"I don't know, maybe 10 miles from here?" he stated, looking at the trail head.

"It could be a lot worse." Grover nodded.

"Just remember, keep your eyes peeled for a cairn like the one we found in Siberia."

"Will do." They took off, walking down the trail. After about an hour, Grover fell into step with Luke, discussing weapons techniques and swordplay while Annabeth and Cayleigh fell in line.

"So you really want to save him, don't you," Cayleigh said to Annabeth as they walked.

"You have no idea." Annabeth shook his head.

"You really care about him, I can tell that much." Cayleigh smiled. "Are you in love with him?"

"With Percy?" Annabeth asked.

"Yes." Cayleigh nodded.

"Oh, no!" Annabeth couldn't help but laugh slightly. "God no, I love him, but it's more like a brother, like a best friend…it's not like that, not with us." She shook her head.

"That makes sense." Cayleigh nodded. "I know what it's like to care about someone, we all have our friends that we need to protect, people that we love, but could never be in love with."

"Luke?" Annabeth asked.

"Yeah." Cayleigh smiled. "He's my best friend, I was shocked to see him show up, since we parted sorely, but it was great to see him."

"And you'll never fall in love with him?"

"Not a chance." Cayleigh shook her head. "He's not the one for me, he's hot headed, and strong and I like that, yes, but he's really, really broken…and he needs someone who can fix him. I'm not the kind of person who wants to spend time fixing a boy like him. His family issues go back so far that no one really knows which parent he started hating first, his mother or Hermes."

"Yeah, it seems like his mom just kind of dumped him off to live a very different life than the one he wanted."

"She did." Cayleigh nodded. "And he expected that once he got to camp, his father would welcome him with open arms, but it didn't work out that way, he got shunned from both ends and it turned him into the person he is today, the one who doesn't like anyone, who doesn't trust anyone." Cayleigh smiled to herself. "Except for Percy, apparently."

"Yeah, that surprised me too." Annabeth shrugged. "Then again, Percy does have a way of getting people to warm up to him. I couldn't stand him when I first met him, and now look at me, hiking through the Amazon to save him."

"He seems like a good guy." Cayleigh nodded. "And he's lucky to have friends so devoted to him, friends who would risk themselves like this just to save him."

"Grove and I would do anything for Percy." Annabeth smiled, looking ahead at the two boys. "I don't know about Luke, but we've adventured with him before, and he's more than earned my trust, and Grover's as well."

"I'm sure he's deserving of it." Cayleigh nodded, stopping cold. "I think we're getting close," she stated.

"How do you know?" Grover asked.

"This just feels right," Cayleigh stated. "Look around for the cairn." They spent several minutes looking around before Cayleigh spoke up again. "I found it!" They all gathered around as she took it apart, once again handing Luke the inscribed stone.

"Man, Artemis may not have many kids, but she has talented ones." Grover smiled at Cayleigh. Luke was right – she was the best tracker that they were likely to find. How she got that way, he didn't know, but it was clear that detouring to Scotland to get her had been anything but a bad idea.

They waited as Luke read the stone, being more patient this time so as to keep him from getting agitated. It took him even longer to understand the message, but when he got it, a faint smile crossed over his face.

"Luke, what is it?" Annabeth asked, standing up and taking the stone, looking it over.

"Ladies, satyr dude, we're going to Canada."

"Canada?" Cayleigh asked, snatching the stone from Annabeth and taking a look herself, though it would do little good – she spoke no Latin. "Canada? Luke, are you sure?"

"That's what the inscription says." He shrugged. "Canada."

"And I'd be willing to bet that's where they are now," Annabeth chimed in. "When they find a place they like, the Gorgon's like to stay there for as long as possible. If they're comfortable in Canada, then they've probably stayed there, unless they've just left."

"Well let's hope for the sake of our friend that they haven't." Grover bit his lip. "It's been several days now. If he's still alive, he's gotta be hurting. Time's going quickly, and if we don't hurry, we're going to be too late."

"Don't talk like that," Annabeth snapped, slapping Grover's arm harder than she meant to.

"It's the truth!" Grover stated, frowning at Annabeth.

"Look," Luke cut in. "Let's just get out of the forest and find our way to Canada. If we sit around here arguing, we're definitely wasting valuable time. The more bickering that happens here, the less time we have to find and rescue Percy before he's a statue." Luke pushed past them, heading for the edge of the forest at a fast pace, leaving everyone with their jaws hanging open.

"What got into him?" Grover asked, gesturing at Luke as he stormed off, Annabeth following quickly behind him.

"Emotions." Cayleigh smiled, grabbing Grover's wrist and pulling him along as she began to walk. "Like it or not, my boy Luke cares about your boy Percy, and when Luke's got a fire like that lit inside of him, there's no putting it out, not until he achieves his goal." As she walked, Cayleigh couldn't keep back her smile. This was the Luke that she was proud to call her best friend, this was the Luke that she would want no her side in a fight and, most importantly, this was the Luke that didn't fail when he put his mind to things, the Luke that could do anything he wanted to.

_**A/N I promise it goes to Percy in the next chapter.**_


	10. Chapter 10

When Percy awoke, he was once again plagued with the task of coming around to immense pain. He had lost absolutely all track of time, and he had no idea how much longer he was going to be able to survive in this hell pit. He was still bound, gagged and blindfolded, but he doubted he needed any of the restraints anymore. His voice was too hoarse from screaming for it to be of much use, he was far too weak to run away, and he was so tired that he could barely even open his eyes. He knew that the end was drawing near, and he had given up. His father had not come for him, no one had come for him. For so long, he had held faith that someone would come for him, but he had been wrong, no one had come to his rescue, and now he was dying, he could feel it.

The strength was draining from him, as was the fight that he was so famous for. His friends always commended his spirit, and his determination to never give up, but what would they say if they could see him now? out of strength, lying on the ground a complete mess with nothing going for him but the potential of death. That was something that he had never thought he would wish for – death. His will to live had always been so strong, but now he was in so much pain, there was so much suffering, and no silver lining. Percy couldn't help but wonder if all of that would be gone if Stehno and Euryale would just let him die, but he knew they wanted to torture him until the very moment that he died.

This wasn't the way that things were supposed to end for him. He hadn't wanted to die alone in some dungeon set up by the sisters of a woman who's life he had ended. He hadn't wanted to die without letting people know where he was, but now he didn't have a choice. The time for his strength to help him had come and gone, and now he was sure that there was nothing left to do but hope that things would be easier in death.

There were so many things he never got to say, so many things that he never got to do, so many people he never got to help and so many places that he never got to see. He had wanted to tell Annabeth how amazing she was. She was the bravest person he knew, and the best warrior by far. He had wanted to tell her that he admired her courage and skills, but his pride had gotten in the way. He had been so eager to push her buttons that he had neglected to tell her how proud he was to be her friend, and now he was never going to get the chance. When it came go Grover, he had wanted to tell Grover that he was the best friend Percy had ever had. He was loyal, and sure, he had to be to a certain extent, but he had been there for Percy during his darkest hours…save for this one, and that kind of loyalty should have been recognized. Then there was Luke, possibly the most complicated of Percy's regrets.

Luke had betrayed him, he had betrayed the gods and the demigods, but there was something about him that had struck Percy, something about him inside that was so very different from the hard, stony exterior that he projected. Percy had wanted to get to the heart of it, to see what it was that made Luke betray everyone the way that he had, but he had been kidnapped before he ever had the chance to go talk to the boy. He knew that Luke's family life was bad, that his parents didn't love him the way that they should, the way that Percy's mother had loved him, and that he had been all but cast aside as unwanted, leading to anger and darkness that Percy could not have imagined himself until he had been taken by the Gorgons.

Percy was ripped from his thoughts, however, by the sound of the door opening. _No, not them…_ he gulped, wishing now, more than before, that he were truly dead. _Please not again, I can't take this anymore…please, just let me die, don't touch me, don't hurt me anymore! I can't take it! _The worlds were screaming again and again in his head, but he couldn't say them – he didn't have the strength nor was he willing to let them have the satisfaction. He may be begging for death on the inside, but he was never going to let them hear it.

"Percy, my, my." Stheno snickered as she looked at the boy. "How…down trodden you look today."

"It really is too bad." Euryale joined in, kneeling besides Percy. "We were hoping to play with you some more, but you're so weak…however could that have happened?" The sarcasm dripping from her voice was so condescending that Percy nearly threw up, but he managed to keep back the bile rising in his throat as he felt a snake slithering across his back.

"Do you want to die today, Percy?" Stheno asked, removing the gag from his lips. _YES!_ Percy's mind screamed. _YES! JUST SAY YES AND END ALL OF THIS!_

"No." The word exited Percy's mouth barely a gasp, a shell of a whisper, but it was as strong as he could make it.

"No?" She tilted her head to the side, and only seconds later, fangs sank into his back. "Then we shall continue to play with you."

Percy began to breathe as heavily as he could while the snakes bit him, some lightly nipping at his skin, some sinking their fangs in deeper. It hurt so badly, but his throat was too raw to scream anymore. He was losing all hope, and he didn't think that he could take much more of this pain. It wouldn't be long now before they opened the door to find him dead, and as determined as he had been to survive, he was now almost just as determined to die, to end this suffering. He had no idea that help was on the way, no idea that his friends coming for him, no idea that anyone out there still cared about him, and he had no idea, as he fell unconscious once again, that Luke was with them, the very boy he found so confusing, yet so alluring.

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_**A/N Sorry that the posting of this story is so sporadic. I'm trying to finish it, but until that happens...it's probably gonna stay pretty sporadic. I'm sorry! But at least I got this chapter up!**_


	11. Chapter 11

Finally alone again, Percy lay on the stone floor, somewhere between consciousness and unconsciousness. He was too tired to care if he was dying now, too injured to care if he saw the next day, the next hour, the next minute. He just wanted to be left alone to die in peace, something that he thought he could achieve if Stheno and Euryale just left him alone long enough. He was trying to clear his mind, to reach peace, when he heard the door open again. _No, not again…it feels like they just left._ He tried to hide a whimper his body involuntarily curling into a ball to try and protect the vital organs that were already so damaged.

"Oh my god…Percy?" The words jarred Percy from his thoughts of death. That wasn't the voice of either of his captors, that was…Annabeth? "Oh Percy…what have they done to you?" Annabeth collapsed on the ground beside him, pulling him into her lap, instantly removing the gag and blindfold. "Percy, talk to me!" she stated.

"C-can't," he muttered, his head slumping to the side. He couldn't open his eyes, he didn't have the strength to move a muscle, and he could barely say a word to her.

"Percy, come on, hang in there, we're going to get you out of here." Percy tried to smile as he heard Grover's voice, followed by a knife against the ropes binding him. He felt a small wave of hope rush over him as he was cut free, his limbs, for once, unbound.

"I…" he gulped, trying to find his words. "I…I…I…" it was impossible for him to speak, he couldn't find his words, let alone vocalize them.

"It's okay," Annabeth stated, cradling Percy in her lap. "We're going to help you, you're okay, we won't let you die." Percy tried to take comfort in her words, but they weren't in the clear yet. He was still in the dungeon of the Gorgons, and he wasn't anywhere near out of the woods yet. Even if they did manage to get him out of there, he was so weak, so injured, that he was less than confident he would be able to make it out. He had waited all this time for someone to rescue him, and now that they had, he wasn't sure that he could survive the rescue. A part of him wanted to tell his friends to run, to leave without him before the Gorgons came back, but another part of him, a part he was trying to gain strength from, told him to hang on, that he could beat them just by surviving. Stheno and Euryale had worked so hard to try and kill him, and by denying them that, he was taking away their victory over him. All that he had to do to break their spirits the way that they had broken his was to get out of this alive and, somehow, heal enough to go back to normal, if that was even a possibility for him anymore.

He had been through so much during the short time he had been a captive, and he didn't know if he could stand living with that knowledge. They had hurt him in ways that he hadn't thought possible, tortured him within an inch of his life, they even had him, the great Percy Jackson, begging the gods for his death. Percy was broken, and even with his friends here now, he didn't know if he could hang on. He was so close to escape, but at the same time, so far away.

"Percy, stay with me," Annabeth stated. "We're not going to let you die, alright?" Her voice was soft, she was clearly trying to keep him calm. "We're going to get you somewhere safe, somewhere you'll be able to heal."

"Yeah, Perce," Grover chimed in. "Hang in there, buddy, it's going to be alright."

"O-okay." Percy stammered out the word, not sure if he believed it himself, even as he said it. There was a lot of danger in this hell palace of the Gorgons, and even if they got him from the dungeons, to safety, Stheno and Euryale would still be out there, waiting for him, waiting to kill him the second they got the chance. He had branded a target on his back the day he had killed Medusa, and he could spend his whole life running, but they would never stop looking for him, would they?

"Here, Grover, help Annabeth support him, he's not walking anywhere on his own." A third voice joined the group, one that Percy didn't recognize. The look on his face must have caught her attention, because Cayleigh began to speak softly to him. "Percy, my name is Cayleigh. Your friends came to me, asking me to help them find you, and I'm going to help them, just listen to what we say and you'll be alright." She sounded encouraging, and she hoped that her words would be enough to soothe him – it was clear that he was having trouble than they had anticipated. He was in terrible shape, and they had expected it to be bad, but they had not expected to find him so close to death.

"Here, Cayleigh, you help Grover, we'll need Annabeth's sword should we run into trouble, aside from me, she's the best swordsman we've got, and if the Gorgon's come, we're going to need her."

"L-Luke?" Percy gulped. He must be dreaming now. Maybe this WAS death, maybe he had passed and this was his fantasy, his last wish before he went as a shade to Hades.

"Yeah, Percy." Luke nodded, his voice low but even. "It's me. We can talk about this later, just right now I need you to stay calm and try to listen to us. Grover and Cayleigh are going to carry you, Annabeth and I will scout the way." Percy couldn't believe what he was hearing. Luke, the boy that had tried to kill him, the boy that had been his sworn enemy, but also his great confusion was here to help rescue him?

"Y-you…" Percy tried to speak, but the words were too hard to say.

"Shh, Percy," Luke soothed, hoping to sound calming. "Save it for later, alright? For now, we're just going to get you out of here."

"Oh, that's sweet." A cold voice rang off of the stone. "Euryale, they think they're going to save the young hero."

"Oh, no." Euryale cackled. "No, no, no, that's not how this works. You're not going anywhere."

* * *

_**A/N And they meet! We shall see what happens! I know this isn't the best written story and I know it's not the most accurate, but I'm having a lot of fun with it, so that's what matters...right? :P**_


	12. Chapter 12

"DON'T LOOK AT THEM!" Annabeth shouted, drawing her sword and looking to the ground.

"Smart girl." Stheno smirked. "But how do you plan to defeat us if you cannot see us?"

"You don't think we came all this way unprepared, did you?" She stared down at her sword, watching the sister's reflection through t as they both advanced on the group.

"I think you might have," Euryale stated. "Considering that you forgot that we can't be killed."

"That's almost true," Luke stated, his eyes turned away, he, too, glancing at his sword.

"It's true enough." Stheno smiled. "It was cute of you to come to your friend's aid, but I think you will find that it was foolish as you will all die here and now."

"No, we won't." Annabeth shook her head, preparing to fight. "You won't take us, you're outnumbered."

"Oh, I think we have the advantage." Euryale laughed and advanced on Annabeth. Annabeth wasted no time running her through with the sword, and while it held her up momentarily, she regained her strength, the whole caused be the sword healing up almost instantly. With that, the fight had begun. Luke and Annabeth charged at the sister's, swords flashing as they tried not to look them in the eyes. It was a difficult challenge, but both were skilled fighters, but it didn't help that the sisters could not be killed with a blade.

"You have to get Percy out of here!" Annabeth shouted as she ducked one of the snakes from Stheno's hair.

"We'll try!" Grover stated, trying to support the boy. He didn't see a way out just yet as the fight was blocking the door and they couldn't risk looking at the Gorgons. Luke and Annabeth were doing a good job of keeping them at bay, but that couldn't last forever, could it? A battle against immortal figures was no easier than it sounded, and Annabeth and Luke were both having trouble trying to figure out what to do.

"We don't have to kill them," Annabeth said to Luke. "We just have to get Percy out of here and then ourselves."

"That's good," Luke panted, taking another swipe at Euryale. "Because I'm one hundred percent sure that they cannot be killed."

"Just stay strong, Luke." Annabeth hoped that he words were encouraging, but she, herself, was beginning to lose faith in the idea that they could get away with this.

"Stop fighting us, little girl." Stheno pounced on Annabeth, trying to disarm her. However, Annabeth used the time to cut off the heads of one of Stheno's snakes. "Oh, so you thought you'd mess with my hair?" She asked, snarling at Annabeth, who was doing all that she could to keep her eyes averted from the mass of hair. "Well I think that our messing with your friend is not quite over." She charged at Cayleigh and Grover, knocking them aside and grabbing Percy, who's eyes were squeezed shut.

"Oh, sister, what have you got there?" Euryale said playfully. "I think now might be the perfect time to end our hero – just when all of his friends came out to rescue him, don't you think?"

"That sounds delightful." Stheno smirked, looking down at her captive. One of her snakes was pressed against his cheek, running over his face, trying to make him as uncomfortable as possible. The Gorgons did not want to see Percy get away, and he had been tortured for so long that, well, his death might be alright if it came just a little bit early.

"I think all of your friends should watch this, Percy," Euryale stated. "Since, you know, it is the last time that they're going to see you alive."

"NO!" Annabeth shouted, trying to move forwards.

"Stop!" Euryale stood in her way. "If you move one step more, Percy dies, do you understand?"

"Yes," Annabeth muttered softly. This was a terrible situation. There was almost noting that she could do to save Percy now, and on top of that, there was a good chance that she, or the others might be killed as well. The rescue mission had not gone the way that she was hoping it would have, and now it looked as though Percy was going to die no matter what, and they would have to run if they wanted their freedom.

"Any last words for your friends, fallen hero?" Stheno stated as the tip of the snake's fangs grazed across his cheek. "Anything you want to say to your brave friends before you die…of course, anything you say won't be kept long, for we will kill them instantly once we have taken you out." She laughed coldly.

"It's almost a same, really," Euryale said mockingly. "Such beautiful friendship, such devotion to each other, such…loyalty. They came all this way, found our lair, only to be meet with the death of both their hero and themselves. It's poetic, isn't it? Very…Shakespearean."

"Don't…don't hurt them," Percy choked out, his heart racing.

"Aw, even on the brink of death you're trying to be a hero." Stheno smiled. "Too bad – if I'd known that it would only take the death of a friend to make you beg, I would have taken them long ago. Which one is it, Percy? Which one means the most to you? Which one should we kill before you?"

"Is it the Satyr?" Euryale asked. "Your protector with the horns?" Percy didn't answer, but tried to keep his cool. "Or perhaps the blonde girl?" again, Percy said nothing. "Oh, no, I've got it." She clapped her hands in delight. "It's the feisty girl with the sword, the one that's been fighting for you with all of her strength, isn't it?" Euryale approached Annabeth, preparing to grab her.

"It's me," Luke stated, breaking Euryale's focus. "I mean the most to him."

"Luke, what are you doing?" Cayleigh asked.

"Telling the truth, for once," Luke lied. "It's me. The rest are just his friends, but…there's more between us." He looked down, and Percy tensed up.

"Euryale, he's telling the truth. Percy's reacting physically to this. It's the boy. Kill him."

"N-no…" Percy gulped, shaking his head. He was powerless to help Luke, but he didn't want to let him die. It was noble, Luke giving himself up so that Grover, Annabeth and Cayleigh might live, but that didn't mean that Percy wanted it to happen.

"He's lying," Cayleigh stated as Euryale moved towards Luke. "He's lying to protect me…" she gulped. "I'm Percy's girlfriend, he and Luke are actually enemies. We blackmailed him into helping us…"

"That does seem more…likely." Euryale laughed. "Percy Jackson, a boyfriend…Stheno, come help me with the girl."

"Of course." Stheno dropped Percy, moving over to Cayleigh. They stood on either side of her, Luke, Annabeth, Grover and Percy huddled together.

"Such a pretty girl…" Euryale hissed. "I think she'd make a lovely statue. Open your eyes."

"N-no," Cayleigh stated, trying to hold them off for as long as possible.

"Luke, we're losing him," Annabeth whispered, looking at Percy, who was drifting from consciousness. "He's not going to make it much longer, now's your chance."

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"The shoes!" She stated. "Take him to water, he needs water to heal, to be strong again, and he'll need lots of it, just get him out of here, okay? We'll figure something out."

"Are you sure?" Luke asked, checking the laces on the winged shoes.

"I'm sure. You're the fastest flier."

"Alright." Luke lifted Percy into his arms and stood, running for the door.

"Where are you going?" Stheno asked as they ran. "We'll kill the girl!" Luke ignored her. He knew that Cayleigh was a goner anyways, and he might be able to save Percy. He flew from the dungeon, out of the lair, trying to find the nearest body of water.

"Hang in there, Percy," he whispered, pushing back the boy's hair, holding tight to his limp, unconscious body. "I've got you."

* * *

_**A/N And the plot continues! The action is almost over, but don't worry, after the action, there's still going to be a good amount of emotional angst and questioning!**_


	13. Chapter 13

Luke flew for several minutes, fearing for the lives of everyone he had traveled with, as well as the boy in his arms. He was beginning to worry that he wouldn't find water soon enough when he spotted a lake. Sure, it was a cold day, but that didn't matter. Annabeth said that Percy needed water, and lots of it. Being placed on the edge of the lake wouldn't do the trick, he needed to be entirely submerged. Without thinking twice, Luke dove downwards, plunging both himself and Percy into the center of the lake. He opened his eyes under water, watching as Percy sank down, down…into the water. Why wasn't this working? Wasn't he supposed to be healing?

Luke had to surface for air, but he dove back down almost instantly, shaking his head to find Percy still not moving. Was he too late? Was he already dead? He surfaced again, looking up to the sky.

"POSEIDON!" He screamed at the top of his lungs. "IF YOU HAVE EVER HEARD A PRAYER HEAR THIS! YOUR SON IS DYING!" He gulped as he looked at the sky. "He's…he's going to die," he said softly. "Unless you help him…please, gods. I know that I've wronged you in the past, but, please, this prayer isn't for me, it's for him. Hear my words, save his life!"

He waited, treading water and staring at the sky. Nothing seemed to be happening at first, but a few seconds later, he felt the water tugging at him. He looked around and saw ripples forming around him. As Luke watched, the ripples became more and more visible, and he began to feel a slight current, something he had not felt before. He looked, focusing on the center of the lake where the ripples seemed to be forming. Luke treaded water, watching in awe as a whirlpool started in the lake.

Luke began to swim for shore, sure that this was Poseidon helping Percy. However, he was slowed down by his exhaustion and the extra weight that his soaked clothes gave him, and the whirlpool was forming faster than he could swim. He felt it pulling him back, and he tried harder to swim away from it, but the whirlpool only grew stronger as Luke grew weaker. He closed his eyes, his heart racing as the whirlpool pulled him under, whipping him around. He couldn't hold his breath much longer, that much he knew. Luke had known the risks of going to rescue Percy, he had known that there was a strong chance that, if they found the boy, he would not come out alive, and for some reason, that had been alright with him.

As Luke began to feel the strong need for air, he became more and more relaxed. He had accomplished his mission, he had hopefully redeemed himself in the eyes of the gods, and if dying was the price, then so be it. He didn't know what about Percy was so important, what about the boy mattered so much, aside from the fact that he was the son of one of the most powerful gods in existence, yet he had risked everything to travel thousands and thousands of miles in hopes of saving his life. Not long ago, Percy had been his sworn enemy, and now here he was, dying so that the other boy could live.

As the whirlpool worked its damage to Luke, however, the water seeped into Percy's body, filling him with the only element that could heal him. The whirlpool held Percy down, filling covering him with water and spinning him around just as it did Luke, but to a very different effect. While the whirlpool sucked life from Luke, it breathed it back into Percy, and then, almost as suddenly as it had appeared, the whirlpool disappeared and the lake was still.

Seconds later, Percy burst to the surface, taking a deep breath. He felt completely different than he had, completely changed. He was no longer dying, the water had healed him, Poseidon had healed him, but he didn't know how he had gotten there. The last thing he remembered was vague, and he wasn't sure it was real, that his friends had come for him, to save him. He had passed out, and now he was here.

"Father?" he looked around, almost expecting to see his father's figure. Who else could have saved his life that way? "Father, answer me! Are you there?"

"I am always here, Percy." The voice soothed Percy slightly; though there was no physical manifestation of his father, he knew that he was there, at least watching over him in some capacity.

"Thank you, father," he whispered.

"Don't thank me," Poseidon's voice echoed. "Thank Luke."

"Luke?" Percy frowned. Luke had been there with Annabeth and Grover…was he here now? Percy looked around, not seeing him anywhere. "Luke?" he called out hesitantly, wondering if the boy would answer, wondering why he would have saved him in the first place. He heard no response, so he called out again, this time louder. He whipped his head around, eyeing the shore for signs of the boy, but seeing none…at least not on shore. A few moments later, his eyes rested on a body floating in the water. "LUKE!" Percy swam forwards, grabbing the boy and turning him so that Luke's head was no longer in the water.

Percy checked quickly for vitality, and finding nothing, he quickly swam for shore, pulling Luke with him as fast as he could. He lay Luke on his back in the sand and did a quick check to see if he was breathing, to see if he had a pulse, but he found nothing. With a panicked feeling starting to engulf him, he placed his hands on Luke's chest, pushing down hard 30 times before breathing twice into Luke's mouth. He repeated the process over and over again, his body starting to grow tired as he used up his breath.

"Luke, come on!" Percy shouted as he used as much strength as he could. He heard a crack, and he was certain that he had broken something, one of Luke's bones, but he didn't stop, he couldn't stop. "LUKE!" he shouted. "LUKE YOU SON OF A BITCH! Don't do this!" He stopped the compressions, breathing rapidly into Luke's mouth.

Percy was running out of strength quickly. He was losing too much breath into Luke's body, and it didn't seem to be helping. He had taken too long, he hadn't gotten to him quickly enough. He tried to continue the CPR, tears of desperation streaking down his cheeks as he did everything that he could not to give up. "Please," he whispered. "Please…" his compressions were growing weak, but he wasn't going to stop until he passed out or Luke came too.

Suddenly, Percy felt slight movement and he grabbed Luke's wrist, checking for a pulse as he lowered his ear to the boy's face to listen and feel for breath. Both were present. "Come on," Percy whispered, turning Luke onto his side. "Come on, Luke…come on." With a small cough, Luke spit up some water, shaking as he did so. He continued to cough, and Percy slumped onto the sand, laying on his back. Both boys lay there, too weak to do anything else, Luke's body still trying to work to save him while Percy's needed air. As Percy and Luke lay on the shore, both gasping for breath, Percy reached out, taking Luke's hand and squeezing it gently before closing his eyes, too dizzy from the lack of breath to stay awake.


	14. Chapter 14

When Percy woke up, he knew where he was almost instantly – the infirmary at Camp Halfblood. He sat up quickly, too quickly, maybe, as his head started to spin. Percy pressed a hand to his forehead to stop the spinning and looked around, jumping back slightly as he saw how close to him Grover and Annabeth were.

"Welcome back, Percy." Annabeth smiled, lunging forwards and pulling him into a tight hug.

"Thanks," Percy managed, though his brain was still trying to process everything that had happened.

"God, we thought for sure you were a goner!" Annabeth pulled back, grinning at Percy before hugging him again. "I'm so glad you're alive!"

"Me too," Percy admitted.

"Same here." Grover smiled at Percy, though his affection wasn't quite as intense as Annabeth's.

"Are you alright?" Annabeth asked, pulling back for a second time. "How do you feel? Do you feel okay? Are you going to be sick? Are you sick? Do you have a headache? Does your body hurt?"

"Annabeth," Grover stated, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Slow down."

"Sorry…" Annabeth bit her lip.

"I'm fine," Percy stated. "At least physically, I feel fine." He shrugged, looking down as everything came rushing back to him. "Luke," he said suddenly. "Where's Luke?"

"He's in a private room," Annabeth stated, reaching out and putting her hand on Percy's bicep, rubbing it gently to try and soothe him. "He was in pretty bad shape, but he's alive, thanks to you, apparently."

"And I'm alive thanks to him, well, all of you, really." He looked down. "But he's going to be okay? I thought I heard something break when I was doing the CPR."

"Yeah." Grover nodded. "He'll be fine, you broke his sternum, but that's a small price to pay for life."

"Oh." Percy nodded, still feeling very much overwhelmed by everything. "And the Gorgons?" He looked up, wondering how in the hell Annabeth and Grover had managed to defeat immortal figures.

"They're out of the picture," Annabeth informed him. "Don't worry about it, okay?"

"Yeah…" Percy bit his lip. "Can I see him?"

"See who?" Grover asked.

"Luke, is he conscious?" Percy bit his lip. He was still confused, but if Annabeth didn't want to explain what had happened with the Gorgons, he wasn't going to ask, not now. There was already a lot on his mind. He believed her that they were taken care of, and that was enough for him, at least for the time being. Right now what mattered was Luke. He had been injured in the fight for Percy's life, and Percy didn't understand that. The last he had known, they had been enemies, Luke had tried to destroy him and had ultimately failed, but why, then, try to save him?

"He's been in and out," Annabeth explained. "I don't know where he is right now."

"Why?" Percy asked. "Why was he with you?"

"We told him that we needed him," Grover stated. "He wanted to get out of his prison, we thought he might run, but he didn't." Grover shrugged. "I don't understand why he fought for you the way he did, maybe to get back into the good graces of the gods, maybe because he had a change of heart, but does it really matter why? He saved your life, Percy."

"Yeah, it does matter," Percy stated, standing up. "Where's his room?"

"Just down the hall and to the left," Grover stated.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Annabeth asked, standing beside Percy.

"No thank you." He shook his head, smiling at Annabeth. "I need to do this on my own – you two go get some rest, something tells me you haven't slept in awhile."

"True that." Grover nodded, putting his hand on Annabeth's shoulder. "Come on, he's safe, we need sleep."

Percy watched as his friends walked away, and he let out a hefty sigh. Once they were out of eyesight, he headed down the hallway, turning to the left and stopping at the only private room with the door closed. He knocked gently.

"Who is it?" Someone called.

"Percy Jackson," he called back. "I want to see Luke."

"Hold on." There was silence, then some whispering, and a few moments later, the door opened. "Be kind," a nurse instructed. "He's still in pretty bad shape."

"Don't worry," Percy said softly. "I will be." He moved into the room, looking quickly at the bed, then at the nurse. "Could you leave us, please? Just for a little while?"

"Will you call if he needs anything?" she asked.

"Of course." He nodded.

"Alright." The nurse stepped out, closing the door behind her, and Percy moved forwards, taking a chair and placing it right next to Luke's bed.

"Hey." He looked at Luke. The boy had a bandage around his chest and he looked weak, but aside from a few cuts and bruises, he looked alright.

"Hey," Luke replied, his voice quiet.

"You alright?" Percy asked.

"I will be." Luke nodded.

"Does it hurt?" He asked, gesturing to the boy's bandaged chest.

"Yeah." Luke nodded again.

"Sorry about that…" Percy bit his lip, leaning back against the chair.

"It's okay." Luke looked in Percy's direction, but focused on the wall instead of making eye contact with the boy. "I'd rather this than be dead."

"You almost were, you know," Percy stated.

"Yeah." Luke let out a small sigh. "I know."

"I want to know why." Percy leaned forwards, looking directly into Luke's eyes, trying to make eye contact with him. "I want to know why you did what you did, I want to know why you went with Grover and Annabeth, I want to know why it was you that was at the lake with me, why it was you who almost died for me."

"We all almost died for you," Luke said, looking away from Percy. "Someone _did _die for you."

"What?" Percy frowned. "Annabeth and Grover, they're fine, they're-"

"Not them." Luke shook his head. "My friend Cayleigh. She's a tracker, we took her with us…she didn't make it out."

"Oh." Percy leaned back in the chair, his whole body rigid. He had cost someone else their life, someone he hadn't even known. He closed his eyes, taking several minutes to himself, just letting that sink in. When he opened his eyes, he once again focused them on Luke. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I really am…I'm sorry about your friend."

"Thanks, I guess…" Luke didn't know what else to say. He and Cayleigh hadn't been close for awhile, but seeing her again had been nice, it brought back some good memories, and he was truly upset by her death. "These things happen."

"Why?" Percy asked again. "Why your friend? She was there because you asked her, yes?"

"Yes."

"So why did you do that?" Percy asked softly, trying not to seem as though he was interrogating Luke. "You hate me, so why risk your life and another's to protect me?"

"Because." Luke shrugged.

"Because?" Percy shook his head. "Luke, that's not an answer."

"Because I don't hate you." Luke bit his lip, looking away.

"You tried to kill me," Percy stated.

"And I've thought about that a lot since it happened," Luke stated. "It was me trying to lash out at my father, you got in the way…we all have parental issues here, and mine just happen to have gotten the best of me for a little while, but they're back in control, okay?" Luke was starting to get defensive, and Percy didn't want to bring up those walls, but he did want answers.

"So you came for me because you don't actually hate me?" Percy asked.

"Yeah, that and I wanted out of my stupid prison." Luke sighed, turning away so that he wasn't facing Percy at all."

"You're lying to me," Percy stated.

"No I'm not." Luke shook his head.

"You wouldn't be avoiding eye contact if you weren't."

"Look, your friends asked me for help, I helped them. You're alive, Cayleigh's not, will you please just leave?" Luke asked, turning back around, tears in his eyes.

"Fine." Percy stood up, heading for the door. He turned back only once he had reached it and looked at Luke. "Thank you," he said before turning and exiting the room. Luke fell back on his pillows, choked up by the lump in his throat as silent tears rolled down his cheeks.

"Luke, are you alright?" The nurse asked as she re-entered.

"No." Luke shook his head, his voice barely audible through his tears. "No, I'm not."

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

"No." Luke rolled onto his side, away from the nurse. He couldn't talk about this, about what he was feeling, not to anyone. Cayleigh was the only person who would ever have understood, and she was gone.

* * *

_**A/N Alright, so most of the MAJOR problems are solved, but as you can see, there's still something lying unresolved! :)**_


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